Life is suite: Special occasion coming up? The Mandarin Oriental Hong Kong is offering a night in a suite for $2,435 (almost half the $4,550 rack rate), with an extra night priced at $1,050. The offer includes high tea for two in the Clipper Lounge and cocktails for two in Vong. It's valid on Fridays and Saturdays only. Call 2522 4466 for more details (
www.mandarinoriental.com).
Weigh to go: Think carefully before you chuck in that extra pair of Manolos. In an attempt to protect baggage handlers from occupational injuries, Cathay Pacific has limited the maximum acceptable weight of a single piece of checked luggage to 32kg. This applies to all flights. Anyone exceeding that amount will be asked to repack in separate bags.
The joy of six: Billing itself as a six-star resort, Nakamanda Resort & Spa has opened on Krabi's Klong Muang Beach, 30 minutes from Krabi International Airport. There are 39 contemporary Thai-style villas to choose from: 600sqft Sala Villas, 1,500sqft Jacuzzi Villas or the 3,400sqft Nakamanda Pool Villa, which has two freestanding villa bedrooms, a living and dining villa with a home theatre entertainment system, a private pool, jacuzzi and deck with sunloungers. Until September 30, introductory rates from $2,106 are being offered through SRS World Hotels. This is a 40 per cent discount, and includes transfers, breakfast, daily fruit basket, complimentary mini-bar, high tea in the Living Room and a complimentary foot massage or body scrub. Call toll free on 800 968 563 or [66] 75 628 200 for details (
www.srs-worldhotels. com,
www.nakamanda.com)
Bid farewell: A recent online auction of Concorde memorabilia drew bidders from 25 countries, including China, Hong Kong, the US and Australia, and raised HK$7.4 million. Winning bids ranged from HK$180 for commemorative picture frames and ashtrays, to HK$1.6 million for a nose cone. Other noteworthy purchases included a toilet cubicle for HK$27,239 and a 12-place Royal Doulton dinner service for HK$10,896. The items were taken from the spares inventory. Seven Concordes are on display at: Airbus UK, Bristol; Manchester Airport; the National Museum of Scotland, near Edinburgh; Heathrow Airport; the Museum of Flight, Seattle; the Intrepid Sea-Air-Space Museum, New York; and Grantley Adams Airport, Bridgetown, Barbados.
New New York hotel: Hotel Gansevoort, which opened this month, is the only hotel to have obtained planning permission in New York's trendy meatpacking district. With a facade clad in striking metal panels and an entrance featuring a four-metre high revolving door and six-metre internally illuminated glass columns, the hotel has certainly made its mark. Inside, eel-skin columns, mohair panels and Warhol and Basquiat artwork line the lobby. Facilities include a 5,000sqft spa and Ono, a 300-seat Japanese bar and restaurant. The rooftop features a heated glass-surrounded pool with under-water music, and a contemporary roof garden. Doubles start at US$325, suites from $575, and the penthouse from $5,000 (18 Ninth Avenue and 13th Street, tel: [1] 212 206 6700,
www.hotel gansevoort.com).